The Tour de France Femmes 2027 London route will take the women's peloton past the city's biggest landmarks for the first time next year.
Organizers unveiled the course on Thursday, confirming an 18 km team time trial on August 1st that threads between Tower Bridge and the Houses of Parliament, rolls past St Paul's Cathedral, and wraps up on The Mall outside Buckingham Palace.
Tour de France Femmes 2027 Heads to Britain Next Summer
The Women's Tour de France 2027 landmarks stage caps a three-day British swing that opens July 30th with an 87 km ride from Leeds to Manchester. From there, a 154 km second stage heads to Sheffield over roads the men's race last tackled in 2014.
The dual Grand Départ makes Britain the first nation beyond France to launch both races in a single summer, though only the women's edition is making its inaugural visit.
After London, the peloton heads across the Channel to France for a grueling mountain finish. Riders face over 3,000 m of elevation gain en route to Clermont-Ferrand, with the race for yellow likely settled on the Puy de Dôme.
This latest route announcement adds nine stages in total, marking a significant expansion for an event that has grown rapidly since its 2022 relaunch.
Global club soccer is moving stateside. FIFA announced on Thursday that the US will host the first-ever Women’s Club World Cup in January 2028.
US to Host Trio of Major Tournaments Through 2031
The tournament joins other high-profile women’s soccer events in the US in coming years. That schedule includes an expanded Olympic field in Los Angeles in 2028 and an uncontested hosting bid for the 2031 FIFA World Cup.
"The United States' recent excellence in staging top FIFA tournaments, combined with the significant interest in women's football there … made the country the standout option,” said FIFA chief women's football officer Dame Sarai Bareman.
The Women’s Club World Cup will feature 19 of the world’s top soccer clubs. Varied numbers of teams from each regional confederation will get a chance to compete on a global stage.
UEFA will send six clubs while AFC, CAF, Concacaf, and Conmebol will send three each, and the OFC will send one. Arsenal (WSL), Barcelona (Primera División), Club América (Liga MX Femenil), Gotham FC (NWSL), Naegohyang Women's FC (DPR Korea WPL), SC Corinthians (Brasileirão Feminino), and Wuhan Jiangda WFC (Chinese WPL) have already qualified.
Caitlin Clark closed out her Indiana Fever season with a heartfelt Instagram message on Thursday, calling 2026 "a season of being healthy and doing what I love." And it didn't take Kelsey Mitchell long to weigh in.
Caitlin Clark Says Goodbye to Record-Breaking Season
Clark's teammate and fellow All-WNBA First Team honoree responded with two words, "da one," alongside flower and heart emojis.
The exchange captures a partnership that powered the Fever to a club-record 28 wins this year. After missing most of 2025 with injuries, Clark averaged 22.3 points — a career high — to go with 8.3 assists.
Meanwhile, Mitchell put up 24.7 points per game at a 50.9% clip, putting her third in the MVP race. Despite that production, Indiana's WNBA playoffs run was cut short by Las Vegas in the opening round.
Kelsey Mitchell Hints at Free Agency Moves
Now WNBA free agency takes center stage. With Mitchell's Fever deal done, the four-time WNBA All-Star is now a free agent without any restrictions. Clark has already made it known she wants Indiana to re-sign her running mate.
"She knows how much I love her," Clark said. "There's nobody I'd want to share a backcourt with other than her."
But Mitchell has signaled she plans to be "selfish" as she weighs her options this offseason.
The Golden State Valkyries head into Game 4 of the 2026 WNBA Finals against the Atlanta Dream in desperate need of a win. Atlanta took a commanding 2-1 lead after dominating Game 3 by 26 points. The Dream ended that contest by netting 97 against the defensive-minded Golden State.
That's a mark only one other postseason opponent has topped against the Valkyries.
WNBA Finals Game 4 Preview: Valkyries Look for Urgency Against Dream
Turnovers have been Golden State’s biggest issue in the series. A team that led the WNBA with the fewest turnovers in the regular season (11.5 per game), the Valkyries committed 36 across Games 2 and 3, which Atlanta turned into 46 points. Guard Veronica Burton acknowledged the problem, calling for “a major sense of urgency” while cautioning the team against overreacting.
Despite the deficit, the Valkyries have reason to believe a comeback is within reach. Golden State hasn't dropped three straight games all season, and this playoff run already includes rallies from double-digit deficits.
Head Coach Natalie Nakase said she plans a sharper, more attack-minded strategy for Saturday, pointing to those moments as evidence her team plays its best under pressure.
"We get even more connected, get more clarity out of it," Nakase said. "This is what brings the best out of us."
Game 4 of the WNBA Finals is slated for Saturday at 12:30 PM ET on NBC and Peacock.
Audi Crooks has a new home in the Big 12. The 6-foot-3 center committed to Oklahoma State women's basketball after a record-setting junior year at Iowa State, making her the highest-profile addition in this spring's NCAA basketball transfer window.
Audi Crooks Leaves Iowa State for New Challenge
Before choosing the Cowgirls, Crooks said she prioritized culture and development over comfort. She wanted shooters who could stretch the floor around her post game and coaches willing to challenge her. So, head coach Jacie Hoyt showed her a reel of missed layups during the recruiting visit.
That kind of directness clearly resonated. Crooks put up 25.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game as a junior while shooting 64.9% from the field. She trailed only one player nationally in scoring and landed on the AP's All-American Second Team. She posted four 40-point performances and closed the year with 37 against Syracuse in Iowa State's first-round NCAA Tournament exit.
Crooks expressed appreciation for her old squad while signaling this change was needed.
"I have a lot of love and care for those people and I always will," she said of Iowa's coaching staff. "But at the end of the day, I had some really honest conversations about the ability to rebuild a roster."
For Oklahoma State, the addition fills an immediate need. The Cowgirls finished 24-10 last season and drew a No. 8 seed before UCLA ended their run in round two. With Crooks anchoring the post, they enter the fall as a legitimate Big 12 contender.
Isobel Borlase wasn't part of the Atlanta Dream's original WNBA Playoffs plan. But after top scorer Allisha Gray went down with a hand injury in Game 1 against New York, the 22-year-old Australian rookie stepped into a far bigger role. And, according to head coach Karl Smesko, that's what changed the series for his team.
"I don't think we win Game 2 or 3 without Izzy," Smesko said. "That's how important her contributions were. She came in and she made a positive impact toward winning in both games. She was ready when she received the opportunity for more minutes. So we're really excited that she keeps that rolling into the Finals."
What Did Borlase Contribute During the Dream's Playoffs Series?
Borlase put up just 4.5 points a night during the regular season, yet she delivered under pressure when it counted most. Her steadiness when Game 3 turned chippy in the second quarter in Brooklyn particularly impressed her coach.
Even without Gray, Atlanta swept the Liberty to push its winning streak to 10 games.
That momentum now carries the Dream into the 2026 WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries. The Valkyries vs Dream matchup favored Golden State during the regular season, where Golden State went 3-0 against Atlanta.
Still, Smesko believes his roster has transformed since then, pointing to the mid-season addition of DeWanna Bonner and Angel Reese's continued growth. And of course, Borlase, who put up 12 points and five rebounds in the team's latest win.
Iva Jovic scored her 42nd WTA tour-level win of the season on Thursday, fighting back to beat Jasmine Paolini 6-4, 6-3 to reach the Ningbo Open 2026 quarterfinals. The young US breakout star needed just one hour and 22 minutes to beat the former world No. 4.
Jasmine Paolini Breaks Early Before Iva Jovic Storms Back
Still, early in the match, it looked like Paolini would be the one to advance. She jumped out to a 3-1 lead behind a quick break. Then, Jovic responded with back-to-back breaks to take the opener. That composure carried into the second set, where she opened a 4-1 cushion before Paolini trimmed the gap to 4-3. Jovic managed to hole serve, breaking once more to close it out in straight sets.
The win means Jovic has now beaten Paolini in back-to-back meetings after she topped the Italian standout in the third round of the 2026 Australian Open, evening their career head-to-head at 2-2.
Beyond that rivalry, Jovic's 2026 season keeps building. Ningbo is her seventh WTA quarterfinal, and she converted five of her last six into semifinal appearances. The win also marks the 20th time she's beaten a top 50 player.
Up next, Jovic faces No. 6 seed Diana Shnaider, who beat Alexandra Eala earlier in the day, for a semifinal spot.
Belinda Bencic's difficult stretch on the WTA tour continued Thursday at the 2026 Ningbo Open, where the Swiss No. 5 seed fell to qualifier Katarzyna Kawa in straight sets. The 7-5, 6-2 second-round loss marks another early exit for the world No. 14, who hasn't strung together consecutive wins since reaching the Toronto quarterfinals in early August.
Bencic Loses Early to Another Qualifier at Ningbo Open
For Kawa, though, the upset was a milestone.
The 33-year-old Polish qualifier, ranked outside the Top 125, picked up her first victory over a Top 20 opponent on the Ningbo hard courts. She also advanced to her first-ever WTA 500 quarterfinal with the win. After trading momentum through a tight opening set, she broke Bencic repeatedly in the second to pull away comfortably.
The timing stings for Bencic. She will likely lose the 500 ranking points she earned from her Tokyo title 12 months ago when the WTA scores update next week. With only 60 points gained in Ningbo, a big drop in the standings is on the way.
Meanwhile, Kawa will look to keep her breakout run going in the quarterfinals. Though she's set to face current world No. 1 Elena Rybakina in the final eight, so she'll need to be even sharper on Friday.
Alexandra Eala gave Diana Shnaider all she could handle before falling 7-5, 6-4 in the second round of the 2026 Ningbo Open on Thursday. The sixth-seeded Shnaider needed seven match points to seal her win over the Filipina breakout star in the pair's first WTA Tour-level head-to-head.
Alex Eala Fights Off Multiple Match Points Before Shnaider Finds Win
Even after Shnaider broke to take a 5-4 lead in the second set, Eala dug in. She saved six match points across the final game, one on a crafty drop-and-pass sequence that briefly extended the battle. Shnaider finally converted on her seventh opportunity to book her quarterfinal spot.
"The first few games you just get used to the spin, where are her strengths, what is her weakness," Shnaider said of her gameplan. "You just gotta give yourself a little more time to adjust, then it becomes a bit easier as the games go on."
That result continues Shnaider's strong run in Asia. The Russian standout was runner-up to Ons Jabeur at the 2023 Ningbo Open and made the semis last year. She now faces Iva Jovic for a place in the final four.
For Eala, the loss cuts short a week that started with a 6-3, 6-1 first-round win over Diane Parry. The world No. 20 has climbed steadily through the rankings this season, though, and should remain a factor as the Asian swing rolls on.
Elena Rybakina advanced to the 2026 Ningbo Open quarterfinals on Thursday after Polina Kudermetova was forced out by a shoulder injury just 30 minutes into their second-round match. The world No. 1 had already built a 5-0 lead when a visibly emotional Kudermetova stopped play.
"Definitely not the way I wanted to finish the match," Rybakina said of the win. She added that she hoped Kudermetova bounces back quickly.
Rybakina Records Milestone at Ningbo Open After Kudermetova's Retirement
Despite the unfortunate ending, the result still marked a milestone for Rybakina.
It was her 50th win of 2026. It was also the first she's picked up wearing the No. 1 ranking, putting her at 50-14 on the season. Only Jessica Pegula and Mirra Andreeva have matched that number this year.
With Kudermetova behind her, Rybakina's focus has already shifted to the final eight in Ningbo. She'll face Poland's Katarzyna Kawa, ranked No. 128, who pulled off a 7-5, 6-2 upset over No. 5 seed Belinda Bencic earlier in the day.
Rybakina now carries a five-match winning streak on the hard courts in China. She remains the player to watch as WTA scores from Ningbo continue to roll in this week.